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During the European campaign in World War II, a group of multinational POWs in a small German prison camp execute daring sabotage and spying missions right under the noses of their Nazi keepers. It's just like watching The Great Escape or Stalag 17 — every week. And the best part? It's a comedy!

Starred Bob Crane as Hogan, Werner Klemperer as the supposedly bumbling Colonel Klink, and John Banner as the lovable Sergeant Schultz. Aired on CBS from 1965 to 1971.

Ironically, all the major recurring German army characters were portrayed by Jewish actors. (An old story claims that Werner Klemperer would only do the show when assured that the Nazis would never be anything close to successful or competent.) And Robert Clary (Cpl. Lebeau), born Robert Max Widerman, survived Buchenwald (12 other family members didn't).

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The show was one of the first American sitcoms to feature a black character as an integral member of the cast. Kinchloe is Hogan's second-in-command and the camp genius (also very unusual for the time period). The producers cast a black actor to play Kinchloe in part to prevent the network from providing Southern stations with a "black-free" cut, as was common at the time — Kinchloe was too important to the story line for his scenes to be removed.

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Hogan's Heroes provides examples of:

Accidental Truth: In one episode, Hogan claims that he and his men were testing people for ESP in order to cover up some gambling. To help sell the lie, he mentions a "Dr. Otto von Tillerman" known for his work in the study of Psychic Powers. Later on, he finds out that there actually is a Dr. Otto von Tillerman who studies ESP, and quips that he might be psychic himself.

Adolf Hitlarious: Hitler himself is specifically mocked on a few occasions. Carter impersonates Hitler several times to dupe Colonel Klink. Kinchloe, played by African-American actor Ivan Dixon, also impersonated Hitler a few times - over the phone, naturally. He once ordered Klink to send a German officer to the Russian front - the officer was secretly a Russian POW.

After Show: Averted, due to Bob Crane's death. Word of God is that Larry Hovis was working on a pilot for a "next generation" spin-off, involving the children of the original POWs, fighting in Vietnam.

All Germans Are Nazis: Conspicuously averted. Only one of the recurring German characters belongs to the Nazi party and the anti-Nazi resistance movement among German civilians is frequently featured.

Anachronic Order: The episodes tend to mention historic events of World War II and have the characters reacting to them. The plots of several episodes even rely on said events. But the events as depicted are not in order, the timeline jumps back and forth. For example one episode of season 5 ("The Big Gamble") and three episodes of season 6 ("To Russia Without Love", "That's No Lady, That's My Spy", "Kommandant Gertrude") mention the ongoing Battle of Stalingrad (August 1942- February, 1943). The characters learn of the end of this battle in a season 4 episode ("Guess Who Came to Dinner?"). An episode of season 1 ("How to Cook a German Goose by Radar") mentions the Allied invasion of Sicily (July-August, 1943) as a recent event. Two others episodes of the same season ("The Prince from the Phone Company", "Hello, Zollie") have characters mention strategic plans for the ongoing North African Campaign (June 1940-May 1943). And then we have The D-Day Landing (June 6, 1944) early in Season 3.

Anachronism Stew: Some things that aren't as obvious to viewers today, but they're there...

In one episode Hogan uses a variation of Steve Allen's What's My Line? catchphrase 'Is it bigger than a breadbox?' which was first coined around 1953.

In an example of stock footage that doesn't come from World War II, in "Reverend Kommandant Klink", LeBeau goes briefly to Paris. There's a shot of the Folies Pigalle (then a theatre/cabaret) where Vince Taylor is set to play. Vince Taylor was born in 1939.

And You Thought It Was a Game: As a diversion for a plan, the team intends to plant a fake bomb supposedly dropped in an air raid. Finding it and thinking that it's the phony planted by his men, Hogan immediately starts to defuse it with clumsy moves that would set it off for real. One of his men stops by and informs him that the fake explosives got stuck in a tunnel and that's a real bomb he's been messing with.

Angry Guard Dog: Inverted — the dogs are always angry to the Germans, but the prisoners have them trained to a T. It helped that the guy who brought in the replacement dogs was part of the German resistance to the Nazi regime. (And not the only minor character to be, either.)

You can't radio a submarine. The technology to communicate underwater wasn't developed until after the Cold War, and to this day can't transmit audio. A possible subversion if the submarine transmitted on the surface, which subs of the era spent most of their time between battles.

"Komandant Schultz" features Uranium as a MacGuffin. The person holding an unshielded brick of the stuff doesn't die horribly at the end of the episode.

In the opening credits, when Klink steps out of his office to inspect Hogan and his men, the guard at his door is holding his submachine straight in front of him, finger on the trigger, pointing it directly at Klink.

In "The Schultz Brigade," Carter repeatedly points his gun (which is explicitly mentioned as having live rounds instead of blanks in it) at Hogan, Newkirk, and basically anybody else nearby.

In the second part of "Lady Chitterly's Lover," Crittendon throws his gun from one hand to the other - while pointing it directly at Hogan.

The realKlink coat of arms is not azure with a lion rampant vert fimbriated or.note The real one would also befit Klink's character more, with the tree being dexter and the sword being sinster.

Occasionally, they will meet a Femme Fatale Spy, and when they do, they'll act surprised that a lady is in the spy business. The field of espionage has always been equal opportunity, and historically leans towards women. They have the strategic advantage of being underestimated and universally welcomed. If asked to name a spy, everyone says "Mata Hari"note a real spy that is - otherwise everyone would say "James Bond".

In the episode "The Softer They Fall" General Burkhalter said that the Fuhrer was so enraged that Jesse Owens beat Germany in the Olympics that he left the stage during the awards ceremony. This never happened, and Jesse Owens reported he was treated very well by the Germans during the 1936 Olympics. However, when he came back to America, the white Olympians were invited to the White House, and he was not.note Hitler wished to only congratulate only victorious German athletes, until the IOC told him that he would need to congratulate all the gold medal winners or none of them. He chose the latter.

Hogan, Kinchloe, and Carter are in the United States (Army) Air Force; Klink and Schultz are in the Luftwaffe (WW2 German Air Force); LeBeau is in the French Air Force; and Newkirk is in the Royal Air Force... however, almost all of them refer to themselves as soldiers, rather than airmen (Hogan once even makes a remark about "Those fliers" when an American bomber crew is shot down and sent to Stalag 13), and often comment about being in the Army. Kinch is actually a walking technical mistake: his uniform is that of a foot soldier, not a flier, bomber, or paratrooper.

Hochstetter's black uniform is usually worn by S.S. guards stationed at locations of particular importance to the Third Reich. In most cases, a Gestapo officer like Hochstetter would have more than likely been seen in plain clothes.

There are a few noteworthy errors with Stalag 13 altogether. First of all, none of the barracks are locked in any way or form. This more than likely would have to be chalked up to Rule of Funny, since otherwise, Hogan and his men wouldn't be able to get a lot of things done. The doors of the barracks would also have opened to the outside (not from the inside) and would have been boarded at night to lock the prisoners in. Also, each of the barracks in Stalag 13 seem to have a separate room, which, in the case of Barracks 2, serves as Hogan's office; barracks usually don't have separate rooms. Likewise, in most cases earlier in the war, each of the characters would have been detained with other prisoners of their own ethnicity and/or rank (Hogan would have bunked in an Oflag with other officers, LeBeau with other French enlistedmen, Newkirk with other British enlistedmen, Kinch with other African-American enlistedmen, and Carter with other American enlistedmen); however, much later into the war, as prison camps were becoming cramped for space, the Germans had pretty much stopped bothering trying to separate the prisoners by race and rank, and put them wherever there was room for them - so depending how far into the war this series takes place, it's not entirely impossible or inaccurate for Colonel Hogan to be sharing space with corporals and sergeants of different cultures.

None of the characters apparently wear any dogtags, or even prison tags; in fact, dogtags are only used strictly as plot devices, such as "The Great Impersonation," where LeBeau, Newkirk, and Carter are captured by the Gestapo, and their forged papers and dogtags are confiscated.

Another error that could be chalked up to Rule of Funny is that realistically, the only clothing the prisoners would have are the uniforms they were shot down and arrested in, however we see that this is not the case with the prisoners of Stalag 13, as we see them in standard issue sleepwear in night scenes (Hogan and Newkirk even have civilian pajamas), and in cases where Klink is entertaining an important visitor, all of the prisoners wear Class A Dress uniforms. One theory could be that since Hogan's men tailored all of their own clothing for masquerades, they could have easily made themselves pajamas or Class A uniforms, but then wouldn't Klink and Schultz be suspicious as to where their prisoners suddenly got extra clothing?

The German officers refer to each other by the English equivalent of their respective ranks. This may or may not lend itself to Translation Convention, but Klink and Schultz's ranks in German, for example, are Oberst and Feldwebel, rather than Colonel and Sergeant.

Ascended Extra: Carter. In the pilot he was one of several escaped prisoners passing through Stalag 13, but become a major cast member during the rest of the show.

Klink: When I looked out that window, I could swear I saw a chimpanzee raking in the garden.

Hogan: Well, if it'll make you feel any better, there is a chimpanzee raking in the garden.

Klink: That's what I thought. Well, that's it, I need to see a psychiatrist. (Beat) WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!!

Bilingual Bonus: Some in German (Klink, Schultz, etc.), and some in French (LeBeau). Also a few surprising ones from Newkirk - apparently the US weren't quite as au fait with British slang as they are now, or they certainty would never have aired certain words.

Blatant Lies: "Stalag 13 has never had an escape!" (bonus points if someone's sneaking out in the background while Klink's saying it). Hogan arranges it so that the escaping guest stars are blamed on others, so that Stalag 13's perfect record stays intact: if Klink starts losing prisoners, the Luftwaffe, Gestapo or SS would replace Klink with someone competent. It's lampshaded by LeBeau at one point:

Hogan finds out that one of the new prisoners of war is actually a German spy, so they pretend to trust him and tell him they're going to take him to their secret hideout blindfolded. They then let some false information slip out while talking and make noises that imply their hideout is under the watertower.

In another episode the Heroes discover Klink has bugged Hogan's office and decide to use it to their advantage.

Turned against them by Hochstetter once. It almost got them all killed.

Bluff the Impostor: One of Hogan's mole-digging methods: Ask the new guy what outfit he was with. Inquire about several supposed members of that outfit. Act very suspicious when he doesn't know who they are, and see if the new guy backtracks and claims to know the actually-nonexistent people.

Breakout Character: Hilda to only a certain extent. Originally, the producers were going to give Klink a new secretary each season (hence why Helga was replaced by Hilda to begin with), a similar practice on The Bob Cummings Show, however the producers were pleased enough with Sigrid Valdis/Patti Olson's performance that they kept Hilda for the remainder of the show's run.

Briar Patching: One of Hogan's tactics to get Klink to do what Hogan really wants.

None of the main German cast, and only one of the recurring guest characters (Wolfgang Hochstetter, of the SS and later the Gestapo) is a member of the Nazi party. Truth in Television - according to The Other Wiki, officers of the regular German armed forces were forbidden from joining any political party, which at that time was pretty much the Nazi Party. What is a little strange in this regard is that most of the German regulars and recurring characters are members of the Luftwaffe, which was historically the branch of the Wehrmacht that was the most devoted to the regime and supportive of Hitler and his party.

The show makes it very clear that both Klink and Schultz are decent men, and since conditions at the camp are not harsh at all it's likely all the other guards are as well. A very strong argument can be made that Klink and Schultz know exactly what Hogan and his men are up to and look the other way because they know Hogan's efforts will end the war sooner. It also lets them give a subtle curse you to the Nazis in general and Hitler in particular.

Butt-Monkey: Klink, at least to some extent Schultz. Among the good guys, it's usually Carter.

Cassandra Truth: Carter once had to get caught with a microfilm so they could give fake information to the Germans. He outright told everybody he met that he was a Prisoner of War, and they thought he was a Gestapo agent with fake American papers. He got very frustrated. He finally gave up, asked a (real) Gestapo agent who was in the room checking papers for a ride back to camp, and was found out on the way.

Werner Klemperer was an accomplished violinist (naturally, as his father, Otto Klemperer, was one of Germany's great conductors); Colonel Klink, not so much.

Bob Crane was a highly skilled drummer. In the episode "Look at the Pretty Snowflakes", Colonel Hogan played an impressive drum solo for the song Cherokee in an attempt to cause an avalanche. Bob Crane actually supplies all of the drumming for the show's music, including the timpanis heard in the theme tune, or whenever a German officer, like Burkhalter, enters camp.

Robert Clary managed to show off his singing voice on more than one occasion.

Celebrity Resemblance: When the cast appeared in-character on The Leslie Uggams Show, Hogan gave each of them code names to use, which were their actual actors' names. It's further invoked when Hogan gives Carter his code name: Larry Hovis.

Carter: Why? Hogan: Because you look like Larry Hovis! Carter: Well that's a fine thing to say!

Barracks 2 (where Hogan and his men are kept) has far more bunks in it in the pilot episode than it does the rest of the series, not to mention the door opened to the other side.

Klink's office was given an overhaul starting in Season Three, which made more sense and consistency with the exterior of the Kommandantur (for example, in the first two seasons, there is a window to the outside next to the door, however, that window would actually be looking into Helga's office). That said, Klink's private quarters◊never look the same◊twice.◊

Colonel Crittendon started off as a completely incompetent and oblivious Miles Gloriosus; in his last episode he successfully helps Hogan and co. carry out a mission by impersonating an English traitor.

Despite it already being established that he's a con artist, pick pocket, and magician, Newkirk was a lot more of a generic and static character with no real defined personality during the first season. His notable Deadpan Snarker personality and occasional Sarcasm Mode began developing throughout the following season, and was fully established by season three.

Hogan standing around nonchalantly, and smirking. He also puts his hands on his men's shoulders a lot.

Klink swinging his clinched fist, and letting out a loud mutter.

Kinch raising his eyebrow.

Chaste Hero: Carter. Unlike the other characters, who are gaga for anything with two X chromosomes and a tight shirt, Carter is alternately confused and scared by female sexuality. The weird part is that in "Request Permission to Escape" his fiancée sends him a "Dear John" Letter. One wonders how he even got a fiancée in the first place. Ironically, in one of the last episodes, Carter becomes increasingly aroused at the prospect of visiting a beautiful dancer who happens to be with the Dutch Underground as a part of their latest mission.

Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Vladimir Minsk, the tailor (played by Leonid Kinskey), who only appeared in the black-and-white pilot episode, and turned down a regular role because he found the premise false and offensive, and that in real life, the Nazis were seldom dumb and never funny.

Cloudcuckoolander: Carter again, and an argument could be made about Klink and Schultz to some extent.

Kinchloe - Yellow (without his field jacket, his uniform is olive drab, which is similar to mustard, which is a shade of yellow)

Carter - Green (also without his leather flying jacket)

Comforting Comforter: In "Klink's Secret Weapon", Hogan drapes blankets over Kinch and LeBeau, who are so exhausted they just (like everyone else) collapsed into bed. It's a nice, quiet, and very sweet scene.

Conflict Ball: In "One in Every Crowd", Newkirk starts a knock-down-drag-out fight with a fellow prisoner he catches cheating at cards. This isn't unusual for normal people, but Newkirk cheats at cards so often it's become a running gag. Justified by the fact every time Newkirk cheats, it's while pumping information out of Schultz.

Continuity Nod: And only in the fifth episode, Klink brings up some of the bizarre events that have taken place in previous episodes, such as the Tiger Tank crashing out of the Rec Hall, and the train bearing the Inspector General blowing up.

Correction Bait: One of the ways Hogan got information, by saying the wrong thing and then being corrected.

Counting Bullets: Subverted (and played for laughs) in "Two Nazis for the Price of One," where it turns out that the gunman has one round left in his gun. Defied in "The Schultz Brigade," where Hogan asks how many shots have been fired, and Klink irritably asks "who's counting?"

Crazy Enough to Work: Virtually all the schemes. Hogan becomes known for it, and the trope is name-dropped in one episode. It actually backfires once or twice and is usually lampshaded by Hogan as "I made it too complicated!"

Dead Artists Are Better: The episode "Klink's Masterpiece" ends with Col. Hogan reminding Klink of this trope, noting that Vincent van Gogh and Claude Gauguin starved, only becoming popular after their deaths.

"Dear John" Letter: The first-season finale ("Request Permission to Escape") focuses on Carter, of all people, getting one of these. The fact that it's from MaryJane ("Gee, we've been going together since we were kids!") makes their trying to cheer him up even funnier.

Deep Cover Agent: A few popped up, including two in one episode (one American undercover as a German, one German undercover in Allied Intelligence) who made up the plot of the episode.

Depending on the Writer: Most of the time, Schultz will find out about what the Heroes are up to, or perhaps witness parts of their missions, and in many of these cases, Hogan and his men will flat-out tell Schultz exactly what they're doing (especially in the first season), knowing Schultz will simply turn the other way, and know NOTHING!!! However, on some occasions, the Heroes will actually try to keep Schultz from finding out what they're doing, and if he does find out, he actually will go to Klink to rat them out, putting them in the spot of having to cover up their current mission. Klink is also inconsistently written, being anywhere from simply incompetent to actively aiding the prisoners behind the scenes (the latter mostly showing up in SS episodes).

Distracted by the Sexy: Hogan uses this ploy by having LeBeau taking snapshots of Helga modeling a swimsuit to distract a guard while he bugs his tower.

Dropped After the Pilot: The show had Leonid Kinskey as a Russian tailor named Vladimir Minsk in the pilot. Carter was a prisoner making his way through. Vladimir's actor decided the show wasn't taking the Nazis seriously enough and quit, and Carter became the fifth main character for the series proper.

Dueling Scar: General Burkhalter has a dueling scar. Leon Askin, who played General Burkhalter, actually got the scar while being beaten by members of the SS for being Jewish. Klink mentions getting one in "Hello, Zolle", but his face is unmarred.

During the War: Like M*A*S*H, this show actually aired for longer than the war it takes place in (Hogan's Heroes ran for six seasons)—and the US didn't even get involved until 1941.

The pilot episode is in black-and-white, Klink is actually a rather strict and stern camp commandant (though still a bit of a push-over), Carter is a one-shot character passing through Stalag 13 in his journey back to England as an escaping prisoner, a Russian POW named Vladimir is the camp tailor, all of the prisoners are part of Hogan's team and have access to the tunnels, the tunnels are quite a vast underground network with various different departments (printing press, machinery shop, steam room, and a barber shop), Helga moonlights as part of Hogan's team behind Klink's back, and Burkhalter is a colonel instead of a general.

Although the show was known for its broad, slapstick humor, the first couple of seasons (particularly the earliest episodes from the first season) had a lot more wacky, off-the-wall, and at times cartoonish humor.

The first season in general could have easily been called "Hogan and the Germans", as two-thirds of each episode was essentially nothing more than the bantering that went on between Hogan and Klink (with Schultz often times caught up in the middle).

In the pilot and first season Schultz was so heavily involved in Hogan's schemes that he occasionally had to remind them that he was technically supposed to be on the other side. In later seasons he makes at least a token effort to do his job, although he still turns a blind eye to anything that would complicate his life too much and is open to the occasional Comically Small Bribe.

Dumbwaiter Ride: During a plan to assassinate a roomful of German generals having a meeting in a hotel via exploding centerpieces, the crew learns from a spy that the meeting was actually to give the generals the plans for the defense of France in preparation for an Allied invasion. The spy, ignorant of the assassination attempt, had left his copy in the dining room after it had been cleared out. This meant Le Beau had to ride the dumbwaiter back up to the room and steal a copy of the plans for allied intelligence. Newkirk is devastated when the bombs go off before the dumbwaiter returns, thinking Le Beau had been caught in the blast.

The P.O.W.s had so many tunnels carved out that it's surprising the whole camp didn't sink into the ground. Occasionally holes did pop up, and it would be up to the gang to convince Klink that there were natural caverns or hot springs under the camp.

Interestingly the base actually came to be a bit less elaborate as the show went on. While the tunnels in the series proper never came to resemble the pilot's, there was still mention of the printing press and the metal shop (and the fact that prisoners other than the core group worked down there regularly). In later seasons the radio room is the only room shown, and forged papers seem to be solely Newkirk's job.

Expy: Stalag 13 is this, actually. There actually was a genuine Stalag XIII-C and Oflag XIII-B note During the Second World War, prison camps for officers were called Oflags and camps for enlisted men were called Stalags. The number in the name was for the district — thus, there could be more than one Stalag or Oflag (number) in a district, distinguished by the letter. in Hammelburg, Bavaria. The Oflag was famous as the scene of a failed raid by Patton's troops in the closing days of the war, intent on rescuing the general's son-in-law, who had been captured in 1943. Other than the name, the real Stalag XIII-C bore no resemblance to the fictional Stalag 13.

The POWs create a distraction by tossing a live grenade into Klink's office but without pulling the trigger cord (the equivalent of the pin on a potato masher grenade). This gives them time to pull off their Zany Scheme while the Germans are diving for cover.

Klink: This parachutist is an idiot! He didn't even pull the pin! Hogan: That's the idea, Kommandant! The Allies are trying to win the war without violence!

In "Praise the Fuehrer and Pass the Ammunition", a SS Colonel pulls the pin of a grenade and throws it into the compound. Everyone hits the ground, except Hogan, who picks up the grenade (actually a dummy used for war games) and has this exchange with the Nazi:

Hogan: Oh, Colonel, you seem to have dropped something. SS colonel: My compliments, Colonel. Tell me something, how did you know it was a blank? Hogan: Easy. If it were a live grenade, you would have been the first to run. You see, you and I both know you're not a member of a super race.

A Father to His Men: Hogan. Fittingly, his code-name on the radio is "Papa Bear" (in most of the first season, Stalag 13 is "Goldilocks", and their submarine-contact is "Mama Bear").

Feed the Mole: In the black and white pilot Hogan and his men do this to an undercover German soldier planted by Burkhalter, by telling him things such as that the entrance to the underground tunnels is under the watertower, that the guard dogs in the truck are actually a stereo recording, and switching a gun-shaped lighter for a real gun. The tactic was used in various forms in later episodes as well.

Finagle's Law: Most of Hogan's plots exploit this within the German Military. Conversely, whenever things seem to go well for the heroes early in an episode, you can count on something to go wrong either just before the midpoint commercial or at the 3/4ths pole.

Hogan's snarkiness, in fact, he really began to put the "deadpan" in Deadpan Snarker, almost having no emotional range whatsoever.

Klink's incompetence in his command of Stalag 13, it's a wonder why Burkhalter hasn't just transfered him to the Russian Front already.

Carter's naivete and absent-mindedness, it's a wonder why Hogan continues to keep him as part of his team.

Foreign Cuss Word: LeBeau. Considering that French isn't usually translated the way German is in the show, he could be saying practically anything. He certainly calls the Germans pigs ("Boche") repeatedly, with Klink and Schultz being notable exceptions. He also tells a woman Newkirk is hitting on (in French), "This man thinks all French women are collaborators who will have sex with anyone." Unsurprisingly, it's not translated, and she slaps Newkirk for his troubles.

For Science!: In one episode, a Russian scientist invents a tracking device for the Nazis, just to test a theory. Fortunately he has an attack of conscience and sabotages it. The same for a man working on the atomic bomb.

Freeze-Frame Ending: First utilized a flash-freeze frame beginning in Season Five, when previous producer Edward H. Feldman had been promoted to executive producer (a position the series didn't previously have); this carried on for the remainder of the show's run.

Genius Ditz: Sgt. Carter is clueless about most things, but with either explosives or German disguises he's brilliant — his Hitler is especially lifelike. Also he's apparently very good at running businesses. If he wasn't such a Cloudcuckoolander, he'd be a very dangerous man.

Gentlemen Rankers: Before the war Sgt. Schultz was the owner of Germany's largest and most successful toy manufacturing company. The company got taken over by the German military to make munitions. Col. Klink asks him for a bookkeeping job when everyone thinks the war might be ending.

Germanic Efficiency: Constantly undermined. Although occasionally we do see an efficient German (very memorably in "Hogan Gives a Birthday Party", when General Biedenbender gives Hogan a run for his money).

Lady Chitterley (falsely) implies very heavily that she spent a summer ménage à trois with Hogan and her husband. It's never specifically said, but everyone else gets what they mean — and are disturbed by it. LeBeau comments "We're French! We can all be friends!", referring to a (somewhat) love triangle that's sprung up with him, Hogan, and another Girl of the Week. Apparently this show likes its threesomes.

In "I Look Better in Basic Black," Hogan, LeBeau, and Newkirk have to dress as woman to help three USO girls escape custody. Newkirk and LeBeau are resistant to the idea, and Newkirk declares "you can hang me from the highest yardarm, but under no circumstances will we dress as women!" Cut to all three Disguised in Drag.

In "Everyone loves a Snowman" Hogan and his men are trying to hide a recently downed bomber crew and the Gestapo finds and needs to fill a false tunnel in the barracks. Hogan tells the airmen not to worry, "There are 20 barracks on this base and we have tunnels to all but one, barracks 4." Cut to the men standing in front of Barracks #4.

In "Six Lessons From Madame Lagrange", Hochstetter has LeBeau arrested and put in the cooler to teach Hochstetter to dance. Hogan goes to Klink and Burkhalter to protest, saying "Who knows what kind of torture he's giving him?" Cue LeBeau yelping in pain because Hochstetter is stomping on his foot.

Colonel Crittendon — Colonel Hogan uses this to manipulate him as well.

Gonk: The mean, gruff, homely Frau Linkmeyer, General Burkhalter's sister, whom Burkhalter is frequently trying to marry off to Klink.

Good Is Not Soft: They are at war. And while the Heroes will typically make an attempt to bring a scientist over to the Allies and get them to England, they're perfectly willing to kill them if it comes to it.

Good News, Bad News: Lampshaded in the episode "Look at the Pretty Snowflakes", when Klink announces he has good news, and bad news, and the Heroes, to stall for time, argue over which of the two they want to hear first.

Schultz falls more under the Brilliant, but Lazy label. In one episode the heroes contrive to put Schultz in charge of the camp, but when he proves frighteningly competent at the job Hogan worked to return everything to the status quo... which Schultz preferred anyway.

It's just as likely Schultz and Klink know about pretty much everything and are secretly letting it all go as a Take That! against their Nazi superiors.

Schultz: Colonel Hogan, if you ever do try to escape...? Hogan: Yeah? Schultz: Be a good fellow and take me with you.

Also this beauty from Schultz when the crew tries to push him too far on a bargain: "Sometimes I have to work for OUR side!!!"

In "Crittendon's Commandos", the Heroes learn that Field Marshal Rommel is recuperating in a hospital in Hammelburg; part of the mission is to kidnap him and get him across the Channel. This is the part that fails, of course.

Hollywood Darkness: Gets especially funny when an officer uses a flashlight to read a map and it's dimmer than the light around him.

Hollywood Natives: Inverted and averted at the same time in the episode "Drums Along the Dusseldorf", which reveals Carter is a member of the Sioux tribe (his tribal name is Little Deer Who Goes Swift And Sure Through Forest), despite being fair-skinned and fair-haired. Many of the others razz him throughout the episode with stereotypical war cries, and peppering him with silly questions - not only is Carter clearly annoyed by all of this, but also uncharacteristically slips into Sarcasm Mode. He does, however, take the time to build a bow and arrow set, which he shows little skills with, despite claiming to have won a lot of trophies for his archery skills back home.

Homage: The episode where Hogan & Co. trick a visitor into thinking he's flying in an airplane was a Shout-Out to Batman: The Movie, where the United Underworld tricks the kidnapped Commodore Schmidlapp into thinking he's still aboard his yacht.

Incompetent Guard Animal: Invoked with the dogs of Stalag 13, which were secretly trained by the Heroes' French member LeBeau to disregard their comings and goings (one of their secret tunnel entrances is even beneath the dogs' kennel) and bark on their command whenever it was necessary to the Heroes' scams to pretend to be captured "trying to escape".

Hogan: We like to play these things out like Eliza crossing the ice - keeps us on our toes.

Russian Spy Marya takes this to the next level by becoming an Indy Chessmaster. Her plans often center around purposefully getting Hogan and company into an unpleasant situation and then trusting that whatever wacky scheme they come up with to get out of the situation will benefit her cause as well, despite having no idea what they're specifically going to do.

Idiot Ball: Carter occasionally puts it down and becomes competent. In one episode he can barely manage speaking German, in another he can impersonate Hitler and fool someone who'd actually met him. In at least one episode Hogan draws attention to the fact that he's been spending some time on a ruse for Klink and decides to use it for the heist of the week. It's very possible that Hogan has several stunts going at any one time for fun as well as profit.

Interservice Rivalry: Klink, Major Hochstetter and General Burkhalter would often butt heads, especially when Hochstetter came in and claimed things as a Gestapo matter.

Just a Stupid Accent: Very few "Germans" speak actual German on the show. In fact, because of the Translation Convention, it gets to the point that it's never quite clear who's actually speaking what at any given time. Even the characters lose track at times. Klink, Schultz, and General Burkhalter's actors weren't fakes though. They really were German born (well, at least, the latter two were Austrian)... it doesn't make it any clearer who's speaking what though. On the other hand, there are quite a few authentic German throwaway lines, mostly by Schultz. And LeBeau's actor really was French.

In "War Takes a Holiday" SS officer Wolfgang Hochstetter is tricked into letting Underground leaders go free. He is arrested by the SS at the end and it is likely he will face a firing squad.

In another episode a German general arrives with his group of ruthless elite soldiers, boasting to Hogan's face that he disapproves of prison camps—since he never takes prisoners. Even Klink is horrified by him. Then Hogan dreams up the plan of replacing the general's war game supplies with something a little more realistic...

For all that LeBeau is the smallest guy of the team, when the situation calls for (over)acting he's generally the biggest ham around.

Carter when he's doing his Hitler impersonation.

Schultz (and also given that he's the largest one in camp); in fact, the rest of the cast slowly grew annoyed with John Banner's scenery chewing during filming while underplaying his lines during table readings and rehearsals.

Just about anyone when impersonating a German officer — and some of the guest actors playing German officers, as well.

Last-Name Basis: For the most part, though both LeBeau and Carter are frequently referred to by their first names throughout the series.

Laugh Track: This show has an odd history with its laugh track; in its earlier seasons (particularly the first), the laugh track is almost deafening, and very much abused, with loud bursts of laughter at rather mild gags. It eventually grows more conservative as the seasons progress, but then we get to the last two seasons, where the laugh track is curiously poorly edited, with many episodes (particularly from season five) having laughs no louder than whispers. Interestingly, the 2015 run of the show on ITV4 in the UK actually has the laugh track absent on most episodes. This arguably alters audience perceptions of the show by emphasizing the more dramatic moments over the comedy.

Lethal Chef: At one point, Carter had to cook something. After tasting the thing, Klink ordered to Schultz to "take it away... and bury it".

Limited Advancement Opportunities: Nobody ever gets promoted. Justified for the prisoners because it's extremely unusual for a POW to get promoted while a prisoner, and for the Germans because Hogan goes to great efforts to make sure that none of them get promoted/dismissed/transferred: if they did, their job might be taken by somebody competent.

Man of a Thousand Voices: Everyone when they're impersonating Germans, but Richard Dawson gets special mention for playing Newkirk and various German and British voices that sound nothing alike. This scene in particular, gives a good impression of his vocal talents.

Maximum Fun Chamber: The Russian Front. Notthatmuch of an unspecified place, but since it's used as a gag, never shown, and Klink is deathly afraid of it... (actually, so is Schultz, but he gets threatened with it far less often) it probably fits. Given the casualties the Germans took on the Russian Front in real life, their fear is justified.

When it comes to insults and snark, rank is not an issue. In particular, Corporal Newkirk gets away with calling Sergeant Carter an idiot quite often. The men have a pretty strong bond between them and Carter in particular is probably too nice to pull rank on anyone. For contrast, in one episode, Carter gets a "Dear John" letter, and starts acting more traditionally military, for example refusing to budge until saluted correctly. Hogan exasperatedly asks him if he has to act so military.

Most of the time it's obvious that the men follow Hogan's orders and instructions out of respect, not deference to military rank. The amount of times he directly orders someone to do something is in the single digits, and it's usually when someone's life is at risk. One example is when Hogan is disarming the security lock (a good-sized bomb) on a briefcase so they can find out what's inside. It comes down to a Wire Dilemma type event - turning the handle one way disarms the bomb, the other way triggers it. The men are right behind him, and only back up when he says "That's a direct order!"

"Operation Briefcase" was surprisingly dark, featuring an agent actually dying (offscreen) while in Hogan's care, when most involved escapes by the skins of their teeth. Even more unpleasantly, this episode dealt with the July 20th 1944 attempt to assassinate Hitler—an attempt, as everyone should know, that failed.

In the Cold Open of another episode, the guys are meeting an Underground agent who was a female impersonator before the war. Jokes fly, then Germans crash the meeting, fire at the good guys and take off in pursuit of the Underground agent. Hogan and his men get up again, Newkirk cracks a joke at the expense of the French... and they realise that LeBeau is still on the ground and has actually been shot. Cue one of the most dramatic moments in the (usually) comedic series when Newkirk does a 180 from his usual Deadpan Snarker persona and says quietly, "Colonel, my little mate's been hit." Though it turns out the bullet only grazed him, but LeBeau fainted anyway because he's Afraid of Blood.

"The Experts" also starts out pretty dark, possibly topping the other two examples. It begins with the Gestapo arriving in the middle of the night to arrest two Stalag 13 guards for black market operations. One is on vacation, but the other is at his post, so they go after him. Hogan is watching them arrest the man through the sink. A few seconds later, a machine gun is fired and the guard is dead.

Moral Dissonance: Hogan's Heroes demand Geneva Convention treatment, although they don't really deserve it by constantly breaking their part of the deal (just impersonating German soldiers is a large offense).

Ms. Fanservice: Several, including Klink's secretary Helga in the first season who made occasional returns in subsequent seasons, followed by her replacement Hilda; vampy Russian spy Marya, and Tiger with the French Underground.

Multinational Team: Carter's place on the team was originally held by Soviet Sergeant Vladimir Minsk, qualifying the Pilot's team for this Sub-Trope.note Although both Hogan and Kinchloe were Americans, they formed a plurality of the core team in the Pilot, as opposed to a majority when Carter replaced Minsk.

Name Drop: In one season-one episode ("German Bridge is Falling Down"), a pilot says "Hogan's Heroes...I don't know how they do it."

A Nazi by Any Other Name: The fictional version of Stalag 13. Their activities were slapstick, nothing compared to those of the real-life version.

Nazi Gold: One episode has them trying to intercept a shipment of gold the Nazis stole from the Bank of France. Other episodes involved the Heroes stealing back art or museum pieces that had been stolen from France.

Nice Hat: Just about all of them... Hogan with his Class A cap, Schultz with his Stahlhelm (helmet), LeBeau's beret, Newkirk's garrison (or field service in the UK) cap, Kinchloe and Baker's wool knit caps, Carter's leather flying cap, Klink's WWI pickelhaube, a leather helmet with the spike on top (which he never wears).

No Ending: The series never had a proper Grand Finale, so we will never know what happened when the Allied forces finally reached Stalag 13, thus ending Hogan's mission, at the closing of the war.

No-Nonsense Nemesis: A few showed up over the course of the series, but the only recurring one was Major Hochstetter, who proved essentially immune to all manipulations by the Heroes.

Klink: The last time I missed a date with a woman, it took two policemen and a priest to talk her out of jumping.

No Swastikas: Sort of. The German dub replaces all instances of "Heil Hitler" with nonsense phrases such as "Heil Schnitzler", and Nazi salutes become comedically contrived gestures. None of the main German characters are members of the Nazi party, Klink outright stating he doesn't like them a few times.

Not Even Bothering with the Accent: In the last two seasons, Hogan puts less and less effort into a fake German accent whenever he poses as a Kraut to the point that he eventually plays this trope straight in his last several masquerades.

Not-So-Harmless Villain: Sometimes Klink can be competent, or at least has the air of competence. One genuine example is in "Will the Real Adolf Please Stand Up?" where he's unfazed by Hogan's ploy, calls it out as a pack of lies, and tightens security further. Both Hogan and Schultz are caught off-guard. Another is in "A Man's Best Friend Is Not his Dog," where he and Schultz manage to keep Hogan on his toes for the majority of the episode.

Not That Kind of Doctor: Subverted most of the time with the guys helping various doctors escape from Germany with it being understood by everyone that they are scientists not medical doctors. Played straight in "The Assassin" when Klink mistakes atomic physicist Dr. Vanetti for a physician.

Marya acts the part of an oversexed materialistic flirt, but her plans often run circles around Hogan himself.

Schultz is supposed to be a fool, and always claims to know "noth-ink!", but he's the only German soldier aware of the heroes' activities. When he actively helps the heroes his competence occasionally jumps, even if he still sounds like a fool. In peacetime he owns and runs the biggest toy company in Germany.

The British agent "Nimrod", who congratulates Hogan after Hogan convinces Hochstetter that Klink is Nimrod in order to get Klink rescued from the Underground. Later the real Nimrod is revealed to have slipped plans for a new German attack fighter into a model kit in Klink's office. This may imply that Nimrod is either Burkhalter, Schultz, Hilda, or Klink himself.

There are a few hints that Klink is playing up his apparent idiocy intentionally, and he confessed to hating the Nazis a few times. A running gag was him figuring out what Hogan was trying to manipulate him into and then deliberately falling for it. On one occasion he sent Schultz to warn the prisoners when radio detection equipment was going to be used.

Hogan's telling Klink, or another German officer, that their action/s is/are against the Geneva Convention.

Once a Season: Each season, one of the actors would receive new footage during the Dramatis Personae-esque main title sequence; Ivan Dixon in Season Two, Richard Dawson in Season Three, Larry Hovis in Season Four, and Robert Clary in Season Five.

One-Man Army: In "Operation: Hannibal", there's the following exchange:

Hogan: [telling Lebeau he's needed on a mission the minute he gets out of a stay in the cooler]

Only a Lighter: In the very first episode, a Nazi is sent in disguised as a prisoner to infiltrate their operation. One of the tricks they use to discredit him with his higher ups is showing him the novelty replica-Luger cigarette lighters they're mass producing, so that later, when he sees a real Luger, he fires it, thinking it's a cigarette lighter.

Paper-Thin Disguise: Almost anytime the Heroes pose as Germans, they basically Germanize their own names, such as Kinchloe posing as General/Admiral Kinchmeyer (on the phone, that is), or Newkirk signing Carter's phony papers as Major Newkirkheim. In fact, in one episode, where Hogan drags a reluctant Carter with him on a masquerade, not only does Hogan not even bother using a German accent (see Not Even Bothering with the Accent above), he introduces Carter as... Carter.

The Peter Principle: Klink and Crittendon have both reached their levels of incompetence at the rank of Colonel.

Kinchloe's high school friend, who is a beautiful medium from Africa. If by Africa you mean Detroit.

At one point Hogan convinces Klink that LeBeau is psychic. In another episode, that Schultz is psychic. In another episode, he convinces Klink that Klink is psychic!

Play-Along Prisoner: If Hogan had wanted to escape, he'd likely have been halfway to Switzerland by the second episode. But since he can contribute more to the war effort at less risk to himself by staying in Stalag 13, he only steps out for the occasional day trip.

To maintain comedy, the show avoids mention of the more horrifying aspects of the Nazi regime.

Then there's the whole matter of Kinchloe and Baker being black, which is never commented on. Klink even refers to Kinch as "the most popular prisoner in the camp" and seems to agree with the notion. Really, the only time race is brought up is by the fact that Kinchloe can't exactly go walking around disguised as a German (and yet he makes a wonderful German over the phone) and when the German brass get upset that Kinchloe can outbox the luftstalag champion. Klink doesn't see the problem until Burkhalter brings up that other African-American who was known for athletically outperforming Nazi contestants. Possibly lampshaded when Schultz runs across several of the crew (including Kinchloe) putting on German uniforms. "I know NUSSINK!"

One of the few times the heroes acknowledge race is a brief gag when the crew is preparing for a sabotage mission. Passing around a can of black cammo paint to smear on their faces, Carter tries to pass it to Kinchloe...who simply looks at him with a raised eyebrow. Carter sheepishly hands it to the next person in line. Another time has Kinchloe pointing out his race to convince a Russian pilot that he isn't German.

Properly Paranoid: The Heroes. On several occasions they've dug deeper into either an apparently innocuous Nazi plot and found something worth blowing up or stealing, or ran a test on a new prisoner who appeared to be on the level and found him to be an infiltrator. The one time they skimp on this, it nearly gets them all killed.

Real Fake Wedding: In one episode, the group has to prevent a captured member of the French Resistance from spilling his guts. His captors try to demoralize him by telling him his lover is unfaithful, so Hogan and company trick Colonel Klink into marrying them (reasoning that he has the authority to do so, for the same reasons as a ship captain) under the guise of a play.

Oscar: The town vet who lets Hogan and his men use his truck smuggle prisoners in and out of camp, and supplies the guard dogs secretly trained to be friendly to the POWs.

Tiger: Important Underground leader.

Recycled Plot: Only really noticeable in the pilot, which is a simplified and comedic rework of the basic plot of Stalag17.

Reassigned to the Eastern Front: Klink is constantly being threatened with being reassigned to a much-less cushy position on the Russian Front if he screws up too much.

Refuge in Audacity: Hogan. Hell, the entire series in a meta-sense; it's a sitcom set in a Nazi prisoner-of-war camp. (Although they do stay away from the war-atrocities.) The best example is when he impersonates SS-General Himmelburger and goes on a rampage, threatening to send everyone within his sight to the Russian Front. The understandably rather shocked troops forget to check out his authenticity, and he spirits out a hostage right from under the Wehrmacht's nose.

Right Behind Me: While Klink is on vacation at a ski lodge, he mentions to the desk clerk what a nasty tub of lard Burkhalter is, while Burkhalter approaches him after he was sitting in the lobby waiting for Klink to come down. The look on Burkhalter's face is what really makes the scene.

Rock Beats Laser: In "Drums Along the Dusseldorf", a flaming arrow takes out a truck of experimental fuel.

Running Gag: Several, mostly regarding the lack of Nazi competency. There's even a drinking game based on them. You can find it here.

Threatening to send someone to the Russian Front.

Schultz walking into the middle of a Zany Scheme, then doing an about-face, while declaring "I knowNUZZINK!!"

Hogan playing with his hat and Klink's spiked-helmet when he's in his office (season one especially).

Hogan not knowing what to do, then one of the guys saying something unrelated, and Hogan having a lightbulb moment.

Hogan walking into Klink's office anytime he wants, especially whenever other German military officers are visiting.

In Hochstetter's earlier appearances, Hogan would be present when approaching Klink, prompting him to ask, "What is this man doing here?" or alternatively "Who is this man?" Hochstetter would then relay information to Klink, to which Hogan would also add his comment, prompting Hochstetter to repeat, "What is this man doing here?" Klink would respond to and resume the conversation with Hochstetter, after which Hogan would slip in one more comment, causing Hochstetter to shout loudly, "WHAT IS THIS MAN DOING HERE?!!" or the alternative.

A lot of phone calls between Germans are concluded with "Heil Hitler." Klink seems to find it tiresome. The Heroes (especially Newkirk) seem to delight in repeating it as often as possible when they do phone impersonations. At one point Carter does it out of habit when Schultz shows up.

Werner Klemperer, who played Klink, would only take the role if the producers agreed to cast him as a bumbling, foolish commandant whose plans would never succeed with Hogan winning in the end. As a German-born Jew, he defended his portrayal of a Luftwaffe officer by rationalizing: " I am an actor. If I can play Richard III, I can play a Nazi." In addition, Klink's screechy violin playing was a parody of the fact that in real life, he was actually quite a skilled and accomplished concert violinist and pianist. When Werner's father Otto Klemperer, a renowned conductor, saw his first episode of the show, he remarked: "Your work is good... but who is the author of this material?"

John Banner, who played Sgt. Schulz, commented: "Who can play Nazis better than us Jews?"

Some minor errors, usually regarding the characters' backgrounds, such as Carter's hometown being established as both Muncie, Indiana and Bullfrog, North Dakota (which apparently is a suburb of Crabapple Junction).

In the pilot episode, the coffee pot in Hogan's office is actually a phone tap, allowing Hogan and his men to eavesdrop on Klink's phone conversations, though afterwards, it was strictly a bug in his office (with the mic hidden in the picture on the wall of Hitler giving a speech).

In earlier Season One episodes, LeBeau is married - he directly mentions this in one episode, and is also seen wearing a wedding ring - till by the end of that season, he's single.

Serious Business: Justified in one episode where the Germans bring a truck containing nothing but a barrel of water, yet it is guarded as if it were solid gold. Hogan and company have no idea why until they describe the situation to their superiors. They in turn are seriously alarmed and explain that it is heavy water used for atomic weapons research and order it destroyed at all costs.

Spexico: A variant, in this case Hollywood mixing the Basque and Romanipeople. In "The Gypsy", LeBeau is almost hit by a bolt of lightning; Hogan takes advantage of this by claiming to Klink the lightning did hit LeBeau, and "[his] Basque blood has mysteriously awakened". LeBeau spends the rest of the episode pretending to be in a trance, wearing a clip-on hoop earring, and conning Klink into thinking he's a psychic Fortune Teller, with both Klink and Hogan referring to him as a "Gypsy".

Spiritual Successor: To Billy Wilder's Stalag 17. So much so, that the producers of Stalag 17 sued Bing Crosby Productions for plagarism. They lost. The pilot, in particular, has quite substantial similarities in basic plot to the film (both being based around The Mole). However, it's also a very obvious type of plot for a bunch of spies and saboteurs operating from inside an enemy POW camp. There's also Schultz who is more or less an Expy for Stalag 17's Schulz, except his friendliness with the POWs is genuine.

Staff of Authority: In addition to his monocle, carrying around a swagger stick tucked under one arm is the trademark of Colonel Klink

Stupid Jetpack Hitler: Occasionally, the plot of an episode would revolve around sabotaging a nazi superscience project, such as an advanced fighter plane, remote-controlled tank, or physics experiment.

Success Symbiosis: The heroes frequently have to protect Klink, Schultz, or both from the Gestapo or SS to carry out their schemes.

Tanks, but No Tanks: In "Hold That Tiger", the team steals a goddamn tank from the Third Panzer Division. The script calls it a Tiger, but it's actually an American M7 Priest self-propelled artillery vehicle dolled up in German colors. The same M7 later stood in for a German AFV in "One Army At a Time".

Temporary Substitute: This show utilized this regularly whenever one of the actors missed an episode. In one early episode LeBeau is absent, so another prisoner named Scotty takes his place; similarly, whenever Carter was absent, a pre-M*A*S*H William Christopher will appear in his place.

In "Hogan's Trucking Service, We Deliver the Factory To You", this is Hogan's response when Newkirk tells him that if the Mysterious Colonel X came to harm, it would be a great blow to the Germans.

Hogan: A cold chill came over me as a name came to mind. Newkirk: Name of who, sir? Hogan: Please don't tell me... this mysterious Colonel X is ourColonel Crittendon.

In another episode he hears Crittendon coming up the ladder from the tunnels and facepalms, going "Oh, it can't be..." and manages to pass it off as a salute.

Those Wacky Nazis: This show puts the "Wacky" in that phrase. It also goes to great lengths to establish that its German characters are not Nazis.

Too Kinky to Torture: Marya. In one episode Hogan has to tie her up and knock her out with the butt of his gun so it looks like she wasn't involved. She's ecstatic about it and Hogan can't bring himself to do it. He gives her the gun, telling her to knock herself out, and she does it with great eagerness.

"Darling, oh, they were brutal to me — let me tell you all about it!"

Took a Level in Dumbass: Hogan, surprisingly, has a moment like this - he doesn't know that Toledo is a city in Ohio.

Trash the Set: After the series wrapped up production, the HH producers were approached by the producers of Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS asking if they could reuse the Stalag 13 set. Since that movie's script called for the camp to be blown up, the Hogan producers agreed, so that they wouldn't have to pay to have the set demolished.

Tricked Into Signing: Kinch had pulled the "put a blank piece of paper in a big pile of papers to sign" trick on Col. Klink, so he just happens to have a blank paper with Klink's signature for the plot du jour.

Hogan was named after actor Robert Hogan (who made two appearances; a rock-happy escapee and a British commando), who was a friend of co-creator Bernard Fein and director Gene Reynolds.

Sgt. James Kinchloe (played by Ivan Dixon), was named after test pilot Iven Kincheloe, who served in The Korean War, only to be killed in an airplane crash.

Tunnel Network: So extensive that one has to wonder why the whole camp hasn't turned into a giant sinkhole. In one episode Hogan walks to a specific spot and says "I think this is the only spot in camp we don't have a tunnel under."

Turn Coat: "One in Every Crowd". There are also several episodes where they need to intercept/sabotage/unturn people who have switched sides to ally themselves with the Germans.

Happened the first two times Crittendon took over. (He had developed enough the third time around that he was merelyMiles Gloriosus.)

Surprisingly, Schultz, in "Kommandant Schultz". He was frighteningly efficient when put into a position of power; but in the end he was grateful for the return of the status quo.

Unwanted Assistance: Klink to Hogan in "The Late Inspector General": "Get off my side!" See also Col. Crittendon. Any time he shows up.

Uriah Gambit: On one occasion where Klink is threatened with the Russian front, Hochstetter says that his [Klink's] career will end "ten minutes after you arrive there."

Villain Exclusivity Clause: Klink (justified in that the setting of the show is a prisoners' camp and he's the commander of such).

Vitriolic Best Buds: This can be said of Newkirk and Carter; the on-screen chemistry is helped by Richard Dawson and Larry Hovis being close friends off camera.

Vocal Evolution: Many of the actors spoke with higher and a lot more overly charismatic voices in the earlier seasons; Richard Dawson seemed to exaggerate Newkirk's cockney accent even moreso in the first season; likewise, Werner Klemperer seemed to exaggerate his own accent in the pilot.

War Is Hell: Mostly averted — while Hogan and the men are obviously prisoners (in the absolute loosest sense at times), they live a relatively comfortable life by POW standards and are given liberties that are outrageously lax. However, sometimes played somewhat straight when it is mentioned (in passing) that Hogan's secret missions have directly resulted in the deaths (and sometimes slaughter) of German soldiers.

We Need a Distraction: Usually involving strudel for Schultz, made in a prison camp barracks; mmmmm! Strudel, or beautiful women.

What Happened to the Mouse?: Kinchloe is replaced by Baker in the last season without any acknowledgment or explanation. In real life, Ivan Dixon left the series after the fifth season to pursue other entertainment opportunities.

Marya, the Russian spy. Not only was she blatant about her willingness to sell out the heroes to the Germans if it meant she succeeded in her missions, at least once her mission directly hampered the heroes' mission (while still hurting the Germans). Sure, she was an ally, but it's hard to tell sometimes who's the bigger threat to them, her or the Germans.

Also toyed with concerning the Germans. Nobody in the German military is explicitly an ally of the Heroes, but it seems like the Heer (ground forces) and Luftwaffe spend as much time messing with each other and the Gestapo as they do with the Allies. Truth in Television, mind you. It's lampshaded at least once by Kinch, who mentions that the Germans could start their own war and never even bring in the Allies.

Willing Suspension of Disbelief: We are asked to believe that the saboteur heroes are able to operate inside Nazi Germany for multiple seasons of stories and not get caught. It's classic Rule of Funny. It even gets lampshaded in one episode, when it is noticed by the Gestapo that there is a group of unresolved incidents of sabotage surrounding Stalag 13. Naturally, a zany plan throws them off the track.

In one episode, Klink tells Hogan (who at that point had more or less ensured that he would be shot for incompetence) that "somehow, I don't hate you. In another time, perhaps we could even have been friends." Hogan actually winces.

Yes-Man: Klink, whenever a kissable butt of higher rank than his own is present. Subverted when an SS Colonel comes into camp and openly admits to never taking prisoners (earning the ire of Hogan, who responds with the "we try not to kill people we've met" rule applicable on this show). Klink instantly stops trying to suck up to him.

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